Vulnerable House Republicans are being put on defense amid the fallout from President Trump’s sweeping global tariffs, which have stoked uncertainty about the economy.
Members of the party insist that short-term pain will be outweighed by the long-term benefits of the move, which Trump says is meant to usher in a new era of American prosperity.
But some Republicans in swing districts are already being pressed about the tariffs, raising concerns among some in the party that Trump’s moves could haunt them into next year.
“There’s going to be a point here if this goes on too long that it will solidify in people’s minds and even if it starts to ease, even almost close to parody, that’s the real danger here for Republicans,” one GOP strategist said.
“And by the way, if there’s short term pain and inflation exists in November of next year, Republicans are going to get wiped out.”
Markets took a nosedive Thursday following Trump’s announcement of a general 10 percent tariff on goods imported to the U.S., along with other targeted tariffs on various U.S. trading partners. The financial environment was not much better Friday, when the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 2,200 points and the S&P 500 lost 10 percent over the course of two days.
The developments have spooked constituents, with some already pressing their represenatives about them.
Rep. Jen Kiggans (R), who represents a toss-up district in Virginia, was asked Wednesday about what a constituent called the president’s “inflationary tariff policy” at a telephone town hall Wednesday, according to audio obtained by The Hill.
Kiggans responded by arguing Trump is “playing the long game” and “standing up for American workers, jobs, and businesses” amid the decline in domestic manufacturing.
“I know that there's a lot of concern, anxiety, and I almost want to say fear-mongering sometimes for what this looks like in the short-term, but we have to think about the role of tariffs and what this looks like and why the president has put these in place,” Kiggans said, noting China has a 67 percent tariff on goods that are imported from the U.S.
"I just ask that we be patient with the process and remember the end goal, and I think that in time, although I think any time there's change, either it is the job front or the tariff front, I think the end goal is the thing we can probably all agree on,” she said.
Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), who represents a district former Vice President Kamala Harris won last year, was more critical, defending some of the administration’s approach while noting that “Nebraskans want free trade agreements, not trade animosity.”
“However, for far too long our allies have kept Nebraska’s products out of Europe by charging a tariff on each imported food product based on how much milk protein, milk fat, starch, and sugar it contains,” Bacon added. “With roughly 40.8 percent of our total exports going to Mexico and Canada, I was pleased to see President Trump not impose any new tariffs on Canada and Mexico.”
Republicans have sought to flip Democrats’ attacks around, arguing that Trump is on the side of the American worker.
“Once upon a time, Democrats backed the American worker–now they’re all in to support Beijing,” said Emily Tuttle, a spokesperson for the National Republican Congressional Committee.
Still, some Republicans see cause for concern. Trump is already grappling with increasingly low approvals on the economy: According to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released Sunday, his approval rating on his handling of ...
